Ocean City daily and weekly beach tag fees will double next year

OCEAN CITY, N.J. — It will cost more to sit on the beach in Ocean City next season, in some cases double.

After a brief public hearing, Ocean City Council voted unanimously Thursday night to raise its beach tag fees, citing a shortfall in revenue from beach tag fees.

It is the first hike in a decade for seasonal fees, and the first in 20 years for daily and weekly fees.

Seasonal tags purchased before May 31 will now cost $30, up from $20. After May 31, the seasonal cost will be $35, up from $25.

Daily and weekly beach tags will double, with a day on the beach now costing $10, up from $5, and a week’s worth now costing $20, up from $10.

Frank Donato, the city’s chief financial officer, said, most of the objections were to the hike in the daily fee, and that the city is taking people’s concerns seriously.

“We do view this as a user fee,” he said. “We have to maintain 7 miles of beaches. To reiterate, yes it has been many, many years since we’ve revisited this. We’ve tried to hold the line as long as we could.”

The city typically takes in $4 million from beach tag fees, but brought in slightly less than that this year. In 2021, the city took in a record $4.2 million. The new fees are projected to raise upward of $5.2 million.

After resident Donna Kasper complained about people “running into the water,” when beach tag checkers show up, Mayor Jay Gillian said the city would be stepping up enforcement.

“We’re going to tighten it up a little bit,” he said.

“I don’t mind the price, but not everybody pays,” Kasper said. “That’s what makes me angry. The daily people that come in, cannot get to the water fast enough when the see the tag checkers.”

One resident, William Hooper, noted the city’s median home price of more than $900,000 and suggested the city leave daily and weekly fees alone and make up the shortfall with seasonal fees. “This shouldn’t be a way for the city to share the pain of the increased expenses,” he said.

He noted visitors would also be more likely to pay for parking and go out to eat in restaurants than residents.

Councilman Jody Lechuk said he had heard from residents who said they would pay even more for a seasonal beach tag to cover the costs. He said the increase was long overdue.

He said he might have structured it differently so the increases in daily and weekly fees weren’t so steep, but noted the council could revisit it next year after seeing the impact of the hikes.

“Maintaining 7, 8 miles of beach is no walk in the park, or walk on the beach,” he said.

In the southern Jersey Shore, only Wildwood and Atlantic City remain beach-tag free. Councilman Bob Barr maintained that Ocean City’s beaches were superior. “We’re not locked into this,” he said. “If we see a drastic impact, we can always revisit.”